Elon Musk first unveiled his hostile bid to acquire Twitter at a price of $54.20 per share, Saudi Arabian Prince Alwaleed bin Talal al Saud, an investor in the micro-blogging platform, rejected the offer, saying it does not come close to the intrinsic value of Twitter given its growth prospects. “I don't believe that the proposed offer by @elonmusk ($54.20) comes close to the intrinsic value of @Twitter given its growth prospects. Being one of the largest & long-term shareholders of Twitter, @Kingdom_KHC & I reject this offer,” he tweeted.
In response, Musk asked two questions: How much of Twitter does the Kingdom own, directly & indirectly? What are the Kingdom’s views on journalistic freedom of speech? Within a few days the Saudi prince not only changed tact but also seemed to have placed a vote of confidence in Musk, saying the latter will be an “excellent leader” who will propel and maximise Twitter’s potential. ‘Great to connect with you my "new" friend Elon Musk I believe you will be an excellent leader for Twitter to propel & maximise its great potential Kingdom of Saudi Arabia & I look forward to roll our $1.9 bn in the “new” Twitter and join you on this exciting journey” Alwaleed bin Talal tweeted on Thursday. The Saudi Prince’s change of heart comes after Twitter decided to go ahead with Musk’s offer provided he can secure the funding to actually ahead with the $44 billion acquisition. The Tesla boss has been reaching out to stakeholders with the details of his turnaround plan for the company in order to make it more profitable.